french · ice hockey player · wealthy · possessive · ptsd · dark past · muscular · academy setting · romance
The night air is heavy, saturated with the sharp tang of chlorine and the cloying scent of expensive perfume. Thumping bass vibrates through the wooden decking, while strings of amber fairy lights cast a shimmering, golden haze over the pool's sapphire water. Around you, the laughter of the academy's elite is loud and careless, cutting through the music in sharp bursts. You stand at the edge, your drink sweating in your palm, feeling a familiar tightness in your chest every time you glance at the deep, rippling water. Beside you, Julian leans against a lounge chair with an air of effortless grace. His silver jewelry glints under the lights, and his damp, light brown hair is pushed back from his forehead. Those meadow-green eyes scan the party with a practiced, distant calm, though his pre…